Surge Protection/Power Conditioners?

Gulfstrings

Before our crazy summer storm season begins here in FL, I want to upgrade my surge protection and add power conditioning. Have never spent significantly in this area - and want to stay below $200.

I've looked at Belkin (sp?) and a few others offered at Amazon, Audio Advisors, Crutchfield, etc, but not sure where the "necessary" sweet spot is with these products. Want to buy only what I need.

All advice welcome.

MCCOBRA

interested in this as well!!!

On3s&Z3r0s

If you can boost your budget by $100, this looks to be a pretty outstanding deal as it actually is a UPS as well (http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/753163336/apc-s15?s_c=site_search). I don't know if the UPS feature is absolutely necessary but could come in handy if you had an HTPC or a projector with bulbs. I also noticed it has a fan, but doubt it runs much during normal operation with AC power supplied. If you don't want to go that high, the APC H10 at Amazon looks nice. I haven't used either of these (I use a Furman for my HT), but use APC for all my office computer equipment and have never had a problem with it.

heiney9

If you look at the bottom of this thread (under similar threads) you will see 5 threads about this very subject and that just scratches the surface. This has been discussed ad nauseum recently. Take a look at those 5 threads and I bet you'll find your answer.

H9

EndersShadow

On3s&Z3r0s wrote: »

If you can boost your budget by $100, this looks to be a pretty outstanding deal as it actually is a UPS as well (http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/753163336/apc-s15?s_c=site_search). Many of the sub $200 models seem to be glorified surge protectors with fancy displays, and I think this would work closer to a power conditioner assuming it's burly enough at 900W to handle your whole HT. If you don't want to go that high, the APC H10 at Amazon looks nice. I haven't used either of these (I use a Furman for my HT), but use APC for all my office computer equipment and have never had a problem with it.

THe APC-S15 referenced above is a stupid nice piece of gear. You not only get power conditioning but a battery backup.

To give you an idea of how stupid of a deal it is, the black model from Vanns is 799 :eek: . Same model, just a different color.

For that price its hard to beat. I personally plan to add one to my system ASAP when I get some cash.

thuffman03

There are several threads on this matter but I will still give you my 2 cents. Spend $300 and get the APC S-15 from Vanns. I have two of them. They work great and are a great value.

Gulfstrings

Did a search and found tons of info, thanks. I intend to stay within budget and like what I'm reading about Furman, especially the Furman PL-PLUS DMC 15 Amp on sale at Amazon at my budget max. It seems to do what I need and is thin enough to fit into the space available.

Panamax has some great features with their mid-point - 9 plug unit, but more than double my budget.

Gulfstrings

QUESTION? Some people have written in their reviews that power conditioners seem to "dull" the sound of their systems. Is this possible?

Thanks

PrazVT

The guys at one hifi shop told me the same thing. They said unless you're investing in a higher end power conditioner (I'm guess $700+ ones), to simply plug amps into the wall directly.

Of course when I made that change, I was also changing power cables - so I can't give my own experience.

DMara

thuffman03 wrote: »

There are several threads on this matter but I will still give you my 2 cents. Spend $300 and get the APC S-15 from Vanns. I have two of them. They work great and are a great value.

I'm currently using a black APC S15, you'll know it's working hard for you when your AV system is still playing as if nothing happened while other electronics such as clock and light went off for a second due to blackout, and you'll have the peace of mind that frequent brownouts won't damage your precious AV devices.

On3s&Z3r0s

Gulfstrings wrote: »

QUESTION? Some people have written in their reviews that power conditioners seem to "dull" the sound of their systems. Is this possible?

Thanks

I noticed a difference in my 2-channel system with a high-current 200wpc amp plugged into a Monster surge protector versus directly into the wall outlet. I mostly noticed that the surge protector weakened the bass, so now in that system I have the amp plugged into the wall and everything else plugged into the surge protector.

In my HT system, the Furman I got is built to accommodate amps (has separate outlets for them and is supposed to provide up to 40 amps of reserve power from its caps during loud passages or transients or whatever) I have a Pioneer Elite receiver with a Class D power supply that probably never hits that reserve. I've tried the receiver plugged into the Furman and the wall and can't hear any difference. (My sub is on a separate outlet plugged into the wall.)

So, I guess I'd say in my experience it's possible that a surge protector/power conditioner could change your sound and that it definitely depends on the equipment. You'll probably have to try it both ways to see once you get the conditioner, unfortunately.

djperez81

Hey gulfstrings i feel your pain a few years back i fried all my equipment with a brownout. My very next purchase was a monster hts1600 you can find them new online for about 150 bucks. I have had all my new equipment hooked up to it and havent had a problem since. I know how often the power goes out during those crazy tampa thunderstorms. I purchased mine off Amazon. Good luck

leftwinger57

I'M to soon to converted to power conditioning. I'll be looking at the Acom ACE-15 there seems to be tons of them , they have the sequencial turn on and some # of joules to protect your system. I'am still one who thinks that a direct lightening strike will fry eveything.
I've seen it run through the house wireing and toast garage door openers, microwaves and all other sorts of electronics

Polkie2009

Yikes, I too_ would have to believe that a direct hit from a lightning bolt would fry everything. I've looked at SurgeX home theater units,just haven't been able to save the money for one.

tonyb

I've had the monster 5100, not a cheap unit new. One thing to take away from most of these units is they will only handle a direct hit once, then they are toast. Brown outs, interupted power, no problem, but a hit by lightning close to your house will toast them. It may save your gear in the long run though from constant power outages that you may experience in your area.

Last summer, maybe the year before, I dunno, had a lightning bolt hit about 150 ft from by back door. Toasted the 5100 PC, but it saved the gear. Cable box got toasted though, also anything that was on with those stupid power strips got toasted too. Can't imagine if I had nothing inbetween the gear and the wall outlet, what that would cost to replace. I have a cheaper monster unit now, but it still makes me uneasy when a thunderstorm rolls in and I'm not home to unplug stuff.

On3s&Z3r0s

If surges or strikes are the biggest concern, then you might consider a two-pronged approach (LOL... like a power plug has two prongs... get it?). Anyway, we lose power at least 3-4 times a year... lots of dips and surges. I lost a computer motherboard to it, so I decided to install a whole house surge arrestor (http://ecatalog.squared.com/techlib/docdetail.cfm?oid=09008926801b6125). That would be the first line of defense and anything that gets past that from outside the house should be picked up by even inexpensive Monster or Belkin power strips. Obviously a power conditioner is going to do different things for you than just stop spikes. There are simpler and cheaper panel surge arrestors, but unfortunately all of them (including the one I installed) require you to be comfortable killing the power to your house's service panel and working inside it.

Gulfstrings

Never actually had something fried by our storms though we lose power all the time. Maybe because I do have surge protectors everywhere ... right now I want to replace those with a unit that offers both protection and cleans the power supply.

I like the Panamax design because it's designed not to be affected by multiple surges. But the price and size are bigger than I want.

Furman has the proper proper height for my avaiable space - not sure yet if it can withstand multiple hits before its firewall (if that's its design) craps out.

Still looking and learning.

LesH

I bought two tripplite surge protectors recently. I was looking at Panamax products too. I'd like to get some in the future. I would be surprised if the APC device above is worth anything near the MSRP of 1499 or even 799. For $300 it might be a decent UPS with power conditioning. The one great thing about APC is their use of standard battery sizes.

Gulfstrings

Okay. No surprise here. Exceeded my budget but, as always, a sucker for a good deal. Ended up with the Panamax M5100-PM power conditioner from Amazon at $312.

Went to Best Buy to put my hands on this unit and like what I understand about how it's built, the level of protection if offers (and how it doesn't use firewalling to handle surges) and it's stated output quality.

It's bigger (taller) than I wanted - and more pricey - but it feels like a good value.

Hopefully this will handle our power issues here in FL and eliminate that occasional buzz thru the speakers that I can't recreate or assign to anything inside the house.

Thanks for all the input. This forum is priceless! Well, not exactly ...

BWilberg266

Gulfstrings wrote: »

Okay. No surprise here. Exceeded my budget but, as always, a sucker for a good deal. Ended up with the Panamax M5100-PM power conditioner from Amazon at $312.

Went to Best Buy to put my hands on this unit and like what I understand about how it's built, the level of protection if offers (and how it doesn't use firewalling to handle surges) and it's stated output quality.

It's bigger (taller) than I wanted - and more pricey - but it feels like a good value.

Hopefully this will handle our power issues here in FL and eliminate that occasional buzz thru the speakers that I can't recreate or assign to anything inside the house.

Thanks for all the input. This forum is priceless! Well, not exactly ...

Went the same route myself when I found one for 40% off. It is a great unit. I have very unstable power and have found this unit to do a great job. Had a few power outages and a lightning strike to the big oak in the backyard and this thing just keeps trucking all the while keeping all of my equipment safe and sound.

Good choice and I hope you like it!

Gulfstrings

Thanks for the input, BW266. One reason I went with the Panamax is how it handles surges. If I understand correctly, instead of "firewalling" against a surge it actually clips the current. Apparently you get more useful life from this method meaning you don't have to replace as often.

I had another question (above) based on a couple posts around the net ... did you notice any change in your equipment's performance after installing the conditioner? A few posters said the conditioner reduced bass response ... not sure why that would be, but said they bypassed the conditioner with their sub to preserve their bass sound. Curious ...

Conradicles

I went with a Panamax 5300 for my 2-channel rig, and had no loss of sound quality. Great units.